Annette has been living and working in Hérault since 2008. She has been creative all her life, holding her first art exhibition in 1995 and undertaking dozens of commissions since. One of her paintings was selected to represent a National Park, but sales have never been her primary focus.

Immortalised by Neil Diamond, while jeans are often associated with the USA, denim actually originates from the city of Nîmes - and now a small company has started making jeans in the birthplace of denim.

It’s a relatively daunting experience becoming a mother, so much responsibility and so many opportunities to mess up, but when you add moving countries and cultures into the mix, things get that bit more interesting. In the last two years I have been pregnant twice and lived in three different countries - Hong Kong (China), England and France, all offering their fair share of ups and downs.

At first glance, Ian Berry’s works look like blue-toned photos or paintings, especially if you see them online or in print. However it’s only when you look closer that you realise that these oeuvres are made up of myriad pieces and shades of denim – hundreds and thousands of tiny fragments of denim jeans, painstakingly cut up and glued into place to form incredibly detailed works of art.

Like most other French towns, Nîmes has a number of jewellery shops and jewellers skilled in creating bespoke pieces for clients. However in the pedestrianised mediaeval Écusson district at 31 rue de la Madeleine lies a bijouterie with a difference.

Occupying an exceptional place in automobile culture and French history since 1948, the iconic Citroën 2CV (deux chevaux or deux chevaux-vapeur – literally "two steam horses") celebrates its 70th anniversary this year.

However its story goes back much further. In 1934, Michelin took over the bankrupt Citroën company, and immediately commissioned a survey to help motorise France’s large rural population, who could not afford cars and still used horses and carts. Citroën used the survey results to develop a low-priced, rugged "umbrella on four wheels" that would enable four people to transport 50 kg of farm goods to market at 50 km/h, if necessary across muddy, unpaved roads – including driving eggs across a freshly ploughed field without breaking any!

The picturesque town of Saint-Guilhem-le-Désert is an important vacation destination for visitors interested in culture, but few bother to stop in the town of Aniane, on the other side of the Hérault river. However Saint-Guilhem would never have existed if it weren’t for Aniane, as it was here that a Languedoc nobleman named Wittiza, the son of the Count of Maguelone, settled in 782.

We’ve said goodbye to the sound of the cicada and chilled rosés (or chilled reds for the fashionistas), and our thoughts now turn to that glass of comforting red. Yes, les vendanges are well under way, and the moment towards which all vignerons have been working hard all year whilst praying to nature to ensure the best results possible - either qualitative or quantitative, depending on which side of the fence you sit - is finally here.

"Surviving Provence - Romance, Reality and Wild Boars" is a humorous account of the people (and animals) who share our daily life in the south of France. It is a far cry from an ode to lavender and sunflowers.